144 A BOOK OF ENGLISH GARDENS 



and the Island a Garden and also to learn who 

 helped to make all its present beauty. Brownsea 

 Island is oval in shape and lies at the east end of 

 Poole Harbour. It is a mile and a half in length, 

 and three-quarters of a mile wide at the broadest 

 part, and contains about 800 acres of land, which 

 has the great advantage of being very well watered. 

 In early days Brownsea was covered with Heath, 

 Furze, and Fern, but the sandy soil has proved 

 splendid for a large number of plants and flowers. 

 Mr. Benson, one of the owners of the house, 

 was devoted to Gardening and had a collection 

 numbering many hundreds made of the varieties 

 of plants growing on the Island. 



The name Brownsea has been written many 

 different ways Brunsi, Branksey, Bronksey, Brink- 

 sea, or Brink of the Sea. The origin of the name 

 is difficult to trace. According to Mr. Van Raalte 

 it is derived from " Bruno," to whom the Island 

 belonged in Edward the Confessor's time. 



Brownsea is not mentioned in the Doomsday 

 Book, but was probably included in the Survey 

 of Studland. Leland, on one of his many journeys 

 for Henry VIII., gives the earliest description of 

 Brownsea : " There ly three isles in the haven of 

 Poole, whereof the most famous is Brunkesney, 

 sum say that there has been a paroch in it. There 

 is yet a Chappel for an H eremite. It longeth to 

 Cerne Abbey." In the records of Cerne Abbey 



